Let's try all 3 malts produced at Springbank distillery: Hazelburn (triple distillation + non-peated), Springbank itself (2.5 times distillation + slightly peated) and Longrow (double distillation + moderately peated).
Hazelburn 9 yo 2007/2016 57.9% - 6 years spent in bourbon & 3 years in refill barolo casks.
Nose: quite restrained, a few drops of water help but there's no critical difference actually. Sweet biscuits, nuts and spices. Perfumes after a while.
Taste: very powerful, lots of sweet fruits, touch of oak, leather and pepper.
Finish: medium-long, sweet fruits, oak and chocolate.
Overall: quite simple though pleasant malt.
Score = 21 21 21 21, 84/100!
Springbank 12 yo CS (batch #12) 54.1% - for those who care: 65% sherry casks / 35% bourbon casks were used in a batch.
Springbank 16 yo Private bottling cask #07/318-21 53.5% - Springbank is doing lots of private releases, that's one of them.
Nose: interesting combo of industrial notes and fumes + mango and cranberry + sea and salt + cheese and ham notes, so many different layers here!
Taste: thick and powerful, earthy notes (tobacco), touch of smoke, then you get fruits (lemons, oranges) and minerals.
Finish: not so complex as nose and taste, but still very tasty: peat, citrus and minerals.
Overall: definitely becomes better over time, it is on a shelf for a few months, nose & taste improved.
Score = 22 23 22 22, 89/100!
Springbank 16 yo Private bottling cask #07/318-21 53.5% - Springbank is doing lots of private releases, that's one of them.
Nose: fresh lemon pie with touch of sea and wax.
Taste: actually the same :)
Finish: salty, waxy, citrusy.
Overall: similar story as with 12 yo CS, when tasted fresh last summer it was around 87/100, now the nose improved and the score is higher. It's a bit monodimensional, though dangerously tasty and drinkable.
Score = 22 22 22 22, 88/100!
Longrow 18 yo (bottled 2014) 46% - they say it's limited bottling, but noone knows exact limits :)
Longrow 18 yo (bottled 2014) 46% - they say it's limited bottling, but noone knows exact limits :)
Nose: elegant and complex, tobacco, raisins, apricots, oranges, touch of smoke, a bit of sea salt, it opens and opens new aromas!
Taste: oily, sweet and ashy with notes of apricot (again), chocolate, salt, oak
Finish: quite long one developing on apricots (again!), leather, wax, plums, seeweed and peat.
Overall: I did like this bottling, the nose and finish are so complex! 2016 is weaker imo (around 88/100).
Score = 23 22 23 22, 90/100!
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